Which will lead in the future?

Which tow boat manufacturer does everyone think will pull ahead in the next five/ten years? (and in this case, I'm thinking of pulling ahead in terms of unit sales). Obviously, this thread will have a lot of biased opinions, but I'm curious to see if there are any thought trends with the experts in the industry? Will Malibu and Mastercraft continue to dominate, will Correct Craft see a resurgence or fall behind, will one of the smaller companies make a strong push for the lead (or another thought line, will we see a lot of companies fall out of the market due to the increasingly more difficult environment?). If you do think a company will make a move, why? Is their quality improving that much or are they introducing all the new innovations? Will it be because of their marketing or simply a matter of their financial clout (will some of the more leveraged manufacturers run into difficulties over the next couple years).

With Cope & Mcphetres not selling Mastercraft out in the west that leaves a vacuum for Mastercraft to fill. With Copes now selling Centurions I think we might see more of them.

It seems to me that Tige is putting together a pretty complete package. Look for them to make a run for it.

Apple computers, its the iboat

I cannot tell you which companies will pull ahead because I have not really researched it. However, I think what you will have to look for is which companies heavily invested in infrastructure and new manufacturing technology during the last few years. With our inflation rate: the cost of future infrastructure will be very expensive, and or very difficult for boat manufacturers who did not invest to catch up to those who did.

I heard that Correct Craft invested in a new warehouse: I'm not sure what went in it, or what it was for...

Thanks,

Ken Land
Bullet Lines
www.bulletlines.com

i think it is full of 07 and 08 overstock. ???? just guessing.

^^^ I doubt that will help their already over-inflated pricing.

Ron,
You can't be serious?

i'm not.

I think it will stay pretty similar... Malibu will be on top for some time to come. MC will stay in second and Skiers Choice, has number 3 spot now and are gaining more traction to hold that secure. It will be tough to see how this economy treats the manufacturers.....

I think inflation will begin to put the higher priced lines out of reach for more and more prospective boat buyers. Maybe look to skiers choices with their Moomba line to start to surge along with Supra. They have really been stepping it up the last few years and have been able to keep their price point fairly low.

I agree with Diggs

I have feeling the 21ride and 23ride will be big sellers for malibu next year

I went up to Eugene Oregon a few weeks ago and to a place called Fall Creek. I have never seen so many Malibus in my life. I mean not only were they every where, the drivers of the boats looked to me to be in their late teens or early twenties. I was thinking to myself, why would a parent buy a boat of that calibur to let their kids drive around in? people must have more money then i think. Ok back on target, I am not sure how people are going to afford these boats in the next few years. I mean most of the upper end boats are now over 55 60 correct? I know they are doing 20 year finacing but I was talking to a buddy who works at a credit union and he said they asre making it ever more difficult to get loans now do to the fact that now that the housing market has really hurt the economy, it is gleanning over to the auto and recreational loan market. Alot of people have been over financed in their rigs and now the financial intitutions are starting to see people not paying on their auto or rec loans and just walking away. BK's are at an all time high so I don;t know whats going to happen in the future. I would assume in our I want it now society we will continue to see sales, I just think they will slow a bit do to people not being able to qualify for such large loans.

That being said I second the motion that boats like Centurain, Moomba Sanger etc... will start to make a surge. Just my guess so who knows.

It honestly amazes me at some of the prices of boats and that they are continuously on the rise! I remember when the sante came out and it was pretty pricy but reasonable. now the 210 that used to be a great all around boat that you could get with out it hurtin too much. but now the 210's are how much?! just a question, because I honesly don't know...but what's the price difference in a brand new xstar back in 04-05 to the new ones? I mean they shouldn't be a bit of difference should they? has anything changed on the boat? with the value of the dollar decreasing and the economy the way it is, I don't see how these companies are going to stay "afloat" by continuing to raise their prices. IMO now is the time for a company like epic to make a 21 ft boat with a deep V hull capable of putting the 4000 lbs of stock ballast in it and producing the same wake as the 23...with not all the bling that malibu and mc have in theirs (but maybe an option to add it) and sell it for in the 40's. to me it seems like the company that can make a boat with a badarss wake, decent stereo, and sell it for as low as possible is going to make more money in the long run. I mean...if it costs x amount top build a boat that you are going to sell and make 30k off of but you don't sell a lot of them, and theres a company that makes 15K off of their boats and sell 3 times as many considering everyone wants to get a boat but the economy sucks...that company is comin out on top in the long run...just my 2¢ sorry..

Honestly i have to say skiers choice has really kicked it up a notch the supras are amazing and the moombas especially the lsv and xlv are getting better and better evey year i have a 08 lsv and absolutley love it, it throws a wake that may not be up to the pro standard but i am by no means pro. it throws an awesome wake for what i want both wakeboardin and surfin, and i still have some money left for gas. The interior is nice on it too, it may not have 6 LCD screens on the dash, but i have PP and a wakeplate with automated ballast. anyway i think the boats like the moombas supras and the vride series. are gonna kill it in the next few years

In the early 90's I had a buddy who worked for the local MC dealer. He said they were coming out with a Prostar 190 with a Corvette motor in it, the sticker was going to be around $25K. We all thought they were crazy to charge that much for a ski boat! How times have changed...

Wait until this winter. Someone is going to come out with something that will be pretty crazy.

I wonder what portion of the wakeboarding boat buyers afford them comfortably and therefore won't be affected by the economic slowdown and what portion are really struggling to make the payments on their $50-$60K+ luxury goods. I would guess that many more can afford them comfortably than many of the folks buying your average run-about.

I know that the AVERAGE income for an X-Star owner is roughly $180K-$215K.

supreme is about to change alot of things as far as top notch wake boats. pretty soon they will be a top competitor.

i second Ewing, the vlx just got affordable. the v ride was always a great intro boat and now its even better look to see alot of 21 23 ride series boats on the water, imo.

I don't think the question is who will lead as much as who will survive.The major demographic for inboard boat sales is working class and those people have already been affected.Even after the rampant inflation has subsided the fear will be fresh in peoples minds and boat sales will continue to suffer for some time.When they do make a recovery the finance companys won't be willing to loan like they used to and what recovery is made will be minute.

i hate to be be so pro Tige on this post (although i think the rz2 is my new boat) but the Z1 from tige is hitting the mark as well. solid boat. nice wake, killer surf. fresh design. mid 40s ish.

And on another note...everything that makes a boat is petroleum based. aluminum, stainless steel, fiberglass, resin. SHIPPING ALL OF THESE RANDOM AND TINY OR HUGE PARTS. you name it. it is created and funded by oil. An affordable option is the only way to keep the average consumer buying boats.

i think it will be just about the same. i know Tige has really been stepping it up the past few years. they are now using the same grade viynl and carpet as MC and BU. their new boats have had great lines that make the boat look very clean and nice. i think after the 09's start getting out to the people they will start getting a lot more respect from all the Tige naysayers.

Matt Murphy (ncsuuh) on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 3:04 pm: I know that the AVERAGE income for an X-Star owner is roughly $180K-$215K.

Hmmmm, guess I won't be buying any X-boat again in the next 20 yrs.
I'll have to go ghetto with a Vride or Tige to get out on the water in the next decade.

Bill K~

Ghetto V-ride??

Or Tige'??

No more invites to you...

iboat is my choice.... or skiers choice. i have neen so satisfied with my boat and my dealer rally motor sports.

Steel made with oil? I think you mean coal... At least that's how they do it here.

By Matt Murphy (ncsuuh) on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 1:04 pm:

Wait until this winter. Someone is going to come out with something that will be pretty crazy.

Care to shed some light on this one buddie?

moomba..... they are cheap the economy is slowing.

for sure MC as they have been investing heavily in their salt water series boats. They announced they plan on more than doubling current production rates since the buyout. They are wanting to acheive this primarily through targeting the fishing/family fun market with some of their new boats like the CSX line and they make about 20 different boat models in the salt water series. This market is huge! The wakeboat market is pretty stable and no real big change there.

LOL i loved the iboat one, never think about it but if you just think one second about what apple do those days i will not be surprise to see one day a complete white boat with a touch screen dash and steering float all that with a silver apple on the side of the hull !!

I would say Malibu will be on Top for a long time to come. Tige is the one to watch it will take a while but if they keep it up they will get up in the big 3. Skiers choice seems to be stuck were they are they havn't really gained or lost market share in the last few years.

Andy, I agree with you. Skiers Choice is a making a big push in the market. The quality is right there with the more expensive boats now and people are looking for ways to save money.
Oh, and the LSV is very capable of throwing a "Pro" wake. Talk to some of the pros that have ridden behind the new LSV hull and see what they have to say. I talked to Kyle Schmidt and he told me that the LSV throws the best wake out of all the boats he owns for his school. I know one of those boats is a Malibu too, but don't know which one.